Gadget Glossary

Intellectual Property

Intellectual Property (IP) is a term used to describe the legal rights associated with intangible goods such software. The term intellectual is used because the products are produced by the mind instead of the hands, for example a butcher has the right to sell meat and a writer has a right to sell their writings. However, because the writer’s “property” can easily be reproduced and is not consumed, they have been granted rights to protect them from encroachment.

The idea behind Intellectual Property is that in order by people to produce intangible goods they must be protected otherwise there is not benefit to the producer and therefor they will discontinue producing such goods.

Intellectual Property is that the forefront of legal issues today as a great deal of innovation takes place in fields such as pharmaceuticals and computer science where research is expensive and results are ideas or processes and sometimes not physical goods.